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Not sure if thats what they call it in England, but we always had "Hard" sauce, which was quite highly laced with Brandy or sometimes dark rhum. Back when my mum made her own Christmas pudding she laced it with lots of rum.

It was so rich though, even though we kids wanted to get a little tipsy, it wasn't possible to eat enough to get that way.

Thats one of my favorite foods and memories. It was the end of the meal when the pudding would get steamed and the sauce heated...

James

with a glass of heated brandy. You then carry it to the table with the lights out so everyone can see the flames.

Served with brandy butter (brandy, creamed butter and sugar) or rum butter. Custard or cream for the kids.

If anyone wants to make a proper pudding, now is the time as they need a month to mature.

Yes we did this when I was a kid. Its become less formal since my grandmother's generation passed on.

My mom started her shopping and preparations in early November. By this time they would be well under way. My mother also made 2 kinds of Christmas cake - dark and light(depending on the rum). I know all the jokes about Christmas cake, and the commercial stuff is often bad, but the homemade variety was great - again, covered in cheesecloth and the cheesecloth soaked in rum daily.

James

here I was looking forward to a new way to make them!

We CONSUME Brussel Sprouts (the boys and me).

I steam them, and then butter them with a touch of lemon.

Good stuff.

the missus only goes for boiled until mushy. Someone did suggest deep frying them was a good way to go, but didn't fancy it myself. Butter and lemon is OK. Fenugreek, ginger and black pepper go well with then instead of or with the lemon. The best sprouts though are home grown harvested that morning after a good frost.

is killer!

same with broccolli and coliflower! Dip in some cheese sauce!

Now I am not a fan of cooked spinach, though I like the raw spinach in salads.

But i had some deep fried spinach last year, and man was it good. No dip or butter required.

James